Electric Vehicle Can Charge on the go with TI’s New Wi-Fi Capable Reference Design
To ameliorate eco-friendly Electric Vehicle (EV) charging systems intuitive, Texas Instruments (TI) announces the first reference design that is sought to add Wi-Fi connectivity to an electric vehicle (EV) charging station.
The new reference design uses TI’s SimpleLink Wi-Fi wireless microcontroller (MCU) technology that is touted to allow design engineers to create stations that intelligently charge at non-peak times or detect and communicate when a charging station is available.
The new rollout enables EV owners to remotely monitor and control the charging of their vehicles from just about anywhere with Wi-Fi, presenting dozens of potential use cases from home automation to checking the availability of nearby public charge points.
Key benefits of the EV Charging Station with Wi-Fi reference design:
- Level 1 and Level 2 charge operation.
- Wi-Fi connectivity support from any smartphone, tablet, computer or smartTV thanks to TI’s SimpleLink Wi-Fi technology.
- Power delivery up to 30 A, but expandable by using larger relays.
- Expandable to support other applications such as payment, authentication and home automation design innovation.
The reference design supports Level 1 charging, which is compatible with household outlets, as well as Level 2 EV charging, which helps vehicle owners tap into higher current (15A to 30A and higher) connections available in commercial office buildings.
Level 2 chargers typically take up to eight hours to fully charge the vehicle if the owner wants to plug it in while at work.
Later this year TI reports its plans to introduce a Level 3 EV direct-current charger reference design scalable to 600V and 400A that cuts charging time down to only 20-30 minutes – enough time to stop at a Wi-Fi enabled restaurant that has a charging station and charge the vehicle during lunch.
Download the new EV Charging Station with Wi-Fi reference design.
Download reference designs from the TI’s reference design library.
